This invention relates to a self-service terminal (SST), such as an automated teller machine (ATM). In particular, the present invention relates to an SST which facilitates communication with a user.
A conventional self-service terminal (SST), such as an automated teller machine (ATM), comprises a user keypad for, among other things, selecting menu options, inputting personal identification number (PINs) and the like, and a screen for displaying information to be read by the user, such as instructions and prompts. SSTs used to carry-out security sensitive operations, such as an ATM utilized in the withdrawal of funds from a bank account, may also incorporate means for assisting in identifying a user, or verifying the identity of a user, such as a card reader, accessed via a card reader slot.
While such conventional machines may be used without difficulty by many people, there is a significant proportion of the population who will experience difficulties interacting with such machines. In particular, user instructions and prompts are displayed on a relatively small CRT or LCD display, and thus persons with reading difficulties or any visual impairment may find it difficult if not impossible to operate a machine. For example, a person who is “long-sighted”, and who does not have vision-correcting eyeglasses in their possession, may have difficulty reading instructions and prompts from such a display.